Nightmares, or Fears?
by Just4FunFiction
Summary: Everyone has nightmares from time to time, but is the nightmare itself what's scary... or the idea that it can come true?


**(A/N: welcome to another Loud House fic. Now, this one deals with a more serious topic, and I wasn't sure whether this should be rated as T or M. I've put it as T at first, but if you feel it should be an M-rated piece, let me know and I'll change the rating. With that out of the way, please enjoy!)**

It was dark, wherever he was. Everywhere around him was black, to the point where he couldn't see how far he had been walking. The white haired boy had no idea how he got there, or where he was supposed to go. "Hello?" He called out, finding it surprising that there was no echo to his voice. He could hear his footsteps, as if he was walking on hardwood floor. "Is there anyone there?" Once again, he received no response. 'Where am I?' He pondered.

He kept walking, until he found himself walking into a wall with an "oof". Rubbing his nose, he stepped back, looking at the wall. Slowly, he heard a buzzing sound, before a light flickered overhead. After about ten seconds, the light was fully on. He looked up, but saw no source for the light. "What on Earth is…" He had no time to finish that sentence, as looking down to the wall, his eyes widened. Plastered on the wall was a huge newspaper, which read:

 **Automotive Disaster In Royal Woods**

 _ **Car crash takes the lives of husband, wife and two daughters**_

What really hit home for Lincoln were the photos that accompanied the headline- it was one of his parents on the left, and on the right, he saw his eldest sister Lori holding his baby sister Lily. His eyes began to tear up, his body going into autopilot as he slowly backed away.

"No…" he cried. "N-n-no, it… it can't be…" As he kept backing away, he felt his back collide with another wall. Turning around, he felt his dread grow when the light flickered on, showing another newspaper report. This time, it showed a picture of Leni, under the headline:

 **Chaos At Charity Event**

 _ **Fashion designer, Leni Loud, killed during attack**_

Lincoln was now truly horrified. "Leni… no…" Tears began streaming from his eyes as he tried to run the way, before he saw the first wall. Looking between the two walls, he decided to run away from them both. He never looked back, just running for as long as he could, his heart racing. As he ran, he saw a light flickering up ahead, so he halted to a stop. As the lights came on fully, his heart sank even further when he saw yet another newspaper report, this one showing Luna:

 **New Star In Rock And Roll Heaven**

 _ **Musical prodigy Luna Loud dies while performing due to technical malfunctions**_

"What is going on?!" Lincoln was now in full-on panic mode, his hands beginning to shake. He tried running to the left, but instantly came face to face with another wall that instantly lit up with another of his sisters' faces on a report.

"No! Luan!"

 **Death Of A Comedian**

 _ **Drunken heckler accidentally takes the life of young comic, Luan Loud**_

It was clear as day in black and white. Lincoln began running the other way, and found himself in a maze of walls, each with one of his sisters' deaths written out in bold letters.

 **Fatality In The Rink**

 _ **Lynn Loud Jr. meets her demise due to ice hockey accident**_

 **Death At A Funeral**

 _ **Thunderstorm claims the life of Lucy Loud, age 8**_

 **Loose Animal Kills Child**

 _ **Alligator breaks free and attacks Lana Loud during wrestling exhibition**_

 **Little Miss Royal Woods Tragically Killed**

 _ **Loose lighting falls, killing pageant queen Lola Loud**_

 **Experiment Gone Wrong**

 _ **Four-year-old PhD, Lisa Loud, died due to a chemical explosion**_

Lincoln was just desperate to get away from it all, praying to the heavens above as he navigated the dark and depressing maze that this wasn't real. "Please let this be a dream!" He panted, starting to tire. "My sisters aren't dead, they can't be!" He kept on running like his life depended on it. As he turned the corner, he looked down the hallway and saw something- an open doorway, with a bright, white light coming out of it. "That's it… that's gotta be it!"

Without another word or thought, he took off running once more, desperate to reach the doorway. 'It'll all be over soon!' He thought, desperate to be right. 'Once I go through this door, I'll wake up, and this nightmare will be over! It will be! It… it has to be…" He kept running, the door getting nearer and nearer, until it was right in front of him, and he leapt through with his eyes squeezed shut. "Yes!" He screamed. "It's over! It's…"

Opening his eyes and looking around, Lincoln was devastated to have found that he had not woken up. Instead, he was in a white floored room, where all the walls were covered in the newspaper reports he had just been running from, and the door he entered through was gone. Defeated, he collapsed to his knees. "No…" The tears steamed down his face once more as he quietly sobbed. "It's not over… I'm trapped…"

"Lincoln?" He heard an ominous voice call out, causing his sobbing to instantly cease. He looked up, but didn't see whose voice it was. "Lincoln?" He looked around, but couldn't see who it was. "Lincoln!"

"Who's there?!"

He snapped his head to the right, and froze. He saw the report that showed how Luna had died, but what scared him most was that, from within it, he watched as a blue aura covered it, and as it came out of the wall, Lincoln's eyes darted to the form it took. First, the aura formed legs, then built a body and arms, a blue cloud surrounding it. However, when the form gained a head and a face, his heart dropped.

"L… Luna?" His voice was barely a whisper as the ghostly apparition nodded. "Is that you?"

Stood, or rather, floating before him, was the ghostly form of Luna Loud, with blank, white eyes. "You alright, bro?" It asked, its voice an echo-y, distant yet accurate copy of the voice he knew Luna to have. "What's wrong?"

"How… how…"

'Luna' smiled, sensing the white-haired boy's fear. "Shh… it's okay, Lincoln. We're here for you."

His eyes burst open in full-on fright. "W-w-w-we?!"

'Luna' nodded. As Lincoln looked around, he saw another eleven apparitions take shape, one by one, reanimating his other sisters, his mom and his dad. They all smiled at him, yet just like 'Luna', their eyes were completely white- no pupils, no irises, nothing.

"We're here for you, Linky," 'Leni' told him.

"Yeah, big brother!" 'Lana' added. "You don't have to be afraid anymore!"

"Inky!" 'Lily' cooed.

Lincoln was in shock. He felt like his sanity was fading. "B-but… But, how? How is this happening?"

"Life can be cruel, Lincoln," 'Lucy' explained. "We were all taken before our time, but we are now at peace."

"Then… why am I here?"

"It's simple, champ!" His 'dad' answered. "We're gonna be a family again."

"It's time for you to join us, Lincoln," 'Lori' spoke next.

Lincoln began crying again. "What?! You mean… I'm going to die?!"

"Don't worry, Linky!" 'Lola' encouraged. "It'll be over in a second, and we'll be free to live as a family again!"

"But… I don't want to die… I don't…"

"Lincoln," 'Luan' spoke, "I know it's scary… but don't you want us to be a family again?"

"I do, but… there must be another way."

"Sadly, fraternal unit, there is not," 'Lisa' reasoned. "Our lives cannot be restored, but our family can… if you join us."

"I'm sorry, sweetie," 'Rita' consoled in the boy, "but it will be over soon. All you have to do is join us."

They all began assuring Lincoln it would be over soon, their spectral bodies closing in on the boy, who began shaking. His body wouldn't allow him to move, so he instead curled up into a ball, awaiting his demise. "I'm sorry… I'M SORRY!"

* * *

"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!" He screamed, falling out of the bed. Out of impulse, he shot to his feet. Lincoln was back in his bedroom, in the middle of the night. Normally, when he had a nightmare, the Loud boy would realise this and begin to calm himself.

That night, however, he couldn't.

'What's happening?' He thought, though he could barely hear his thoughts over the ringing in his ear. His head was drenched in sweat, he was burning up, his heart was racing at an alarming rate, causing him to shake. His eyes were wide, dilated, panicked and fearful. 'I don't… feel good." He felt dizzy, causing him to put his hands on his desk to try and steady himself, but his trembling arms and legs did little to help that. 'What's… what's happening?!' He felt numb all over, apart from a nauseous feeling in the pit of his stomach and a pain in his chest. His face frowned as his fear grew, before his chair tipped under his shaking, causing him to fall to the floor, though he barely felt it. 'Am I… am I dying?'

His head turned to the door as it burst open, the sudden burst of light catching his attention. He could hear voices, but they were muffled by the still present ringing in his ear. Looking up through blurry sight, he was just able to tell it was Luna, who crouched down next to him, a fearful look on his face.

"Lincoln!" She screamed, loud enough for him to discern her words. Her eyes were tearing up heavily. "Are you okay?"

He suddenly felt cold, and though he wanted to, he couldn't reach out to her. "H-h-help m-me… I don't… I don't want to d-die…"

Luna gasped, before turning around. "HELP!" She screamed, as her other sisters burst out of their rooms, rushing down the hall with fearful expressions.

"What's going on?!" Lori shouted.

"Is Linky okay?!" Leni begged.

"I… I don't know!" Luna honestly answered. "He collapsed, and he's scared, and… and I-I don't know what to do! He thinks he's dying!"

Everyone gasped, some of them beginning to cry. "Let me through!" Lisa ordered, pushing her way through the crowd into the room. She first examined Lincoln's eyes, noticing the blatant panic in them. She observed his sweating forehead, placing a hand against his cheek to check how warm he was, before checking his pulse. Letting his hand go, she turned to her sisters. "He's having a panic attack," she explained, using common terms due to the situation.

"So, what do we do?" Luna pleaded.

"Luna, you need to calm him down. Tell him to breathe deeply and slowly. Keep telling him that he isn't going to die, and that it'll be over soon."

"Don't l-leave," Lincoln begged.

Lisa, while not one to usually express emotions, smiled and patted his hand. "You're going to be okay, Lincoln. I'll be back soon." She walked out of the room and approached the jock. "Lynn, get him some water."

"I'm on it!" Lynn replied, before rushing downstairs.

"Lynn? Where are you going?" Rita shouted from the living room.

Lisa then turned to Lori. "We need to let our parental units know what is happening."

Lori nodded, before escorting the toddler downstairs, where they could hear their father shouting, "what's going on up there?!"

Whilst Luna tried to move Lincoln into a better position, the girls heard crying from the room next door to Lincoln's. "I'll go check on Lily," Leni spoke, before heading towards the baby's cot.

Luan, unsure what to do, looked to the twins, who were crying as well. She knelt down next to them and pulled them into a hug. "Don't worry, guys," she whispered, "everything's going to be okay."

"But, what about Lincoln?" They both asked.

"Just give it time. He'll be okay."

"You promise?"

Luan nodded. "I promise." She looked over at Lucy, who was forcing back tears as she stood there by herself. "Lucy?" The goth girl looked over at the comedian, who opened the hug. "Come here."

Lucy didn't even hesitate, simply joining the hug and allowing her tears to escape as she held her sisters close. "I'm scared."

"I know. I am too, but don't worry. It'll all be okay."

Luna was able to get Lincoln lied against her, with her arm around him. "You're doing great, Lincoln," she assured her brother. "Just keep breathing slowly, in through the nose, and out through the mouth."

"I… I-I'm scared," he admitted, breaking her heart in the process.

"You're gonna be okay, bro," she managed to choke out. "You're not going to die, you're going to be fine. We're all here for you. You just need to breath. Okay?"

"O-okay…"

"Alright. Breathe in." They both breathed in deeply through their noses. "And out." They then breathed out slowly through their mouths. Luna coached him through it, helping her brother to maintain a steady pace. It took some time, but she was able to feel his trembling begin to quell itself by the time their parents burst upstairs, with Lynn, Lori and Lisa not far behind.

"How's he doing?" Rita asked.

"I don't know," Luan admitted, "you should check with Luna."

"Well, honey?" Lynn Sr. asked. "How is he?"

"His shaking is stopping, but he's still really warm." She looked at her brother, whose eyes were slowly drooping, which worried her. "Lincoln?!"

"The stress has worn him out," Lisa explained, calming her worries. "He needs a moment to come around."

Luna sighed, feeling calmer when she saw his chest rising and falling. "It's okay, Lincoln," she whispered. "You're gonna be okay." She placed a hand against his cheek, which was bright pink and still very warm. "You're okay, little bro."

She lifted her brother back up onto his bed, and Lynn had fetched a cold, wet rag to place on his head, but other than this, no one moved or said anything for about twenty minutes- not because they didn't want to, but because they didn't know what to say, given what was an unprecedented situation to them. They looked nervously at each other whilst Luna continued to monitor the white-haired boy, sat on the bed next to him. It wasn't until she felt him moving that she felt on edge.

"Luna?" He asked, looking a little lost as he sat up. "Is that you?"

She nodded, tears beginning to flow again. "I'm right here, buddy," she told him. "How do you feel?"

"Weird… what happened to me?"

"You experienced a panic attack, dear brother," Lisa explained, prompting Lincoln to look and see the rest of his sisters and his parents, all looking at him with a mix of concern and relief. "No one knows what the exact cause is for them, but they are often influenced by a stimulus that causes anxiety or fear, hence the name."

"Oh."

"You has us really worried there, champ," Lynn Sr. told the boy.

"We thought we would…" Lucy tried to finish that sentence, but struggled to, choking on her words. "We thought we might… lose you."

Lincoln's eyes widened. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to worry you-"

"Lincoln, stop." He looked up to Luna after she said this, seeing the pain in her eyes. "You have nothing to be sorry for. We would worry for you no matter what, because you're part of our family. We love you, little bro." She hugged him closely, while he didn't say anything. After a few seconds, he laughed softly. Luna let go of the hug. "What is it?"

"Sorry, I shouldn't laugh. It's just… ironic."

Everyone was confused by this. "What do you mean?" Rita asked.

"It's just… I made you guys worried that you were going to lose me, all because I was worried that I had lost you guys."

While the rest of the family all looked at each other, Luna seemed to realise instantly what he meant. "You had a nightmare, didn't you bro?"

He nodded, suddenly looking solemn. "Yeah."

"That would explain what caused his anxiety that induced the attack," Lisa noted.

"What happened, Linky?" Leni asked.

Lincoln rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know if I should say. It's not pleasant."

"You can tell us, Lincoln," Lori encouraged, sitting down next to Luna. "We're here for you."

He looked at her warm smile, then saw the same in Luna. Looking back at the others, he saw them all doing the same, so he took a deep breath, shifting his legs so he was sat with his legs over the edge. "Alright, I'll tell you. Just… give me a minute."

"Here," Lynn spoke, handing her brother the glass of water she grabbed earlier. "Take your time, bro."

"Thanks." He took a gentle swig of the water, before he began his retelling of the nightmare. "It was… dark, everywhere. I could only see myself. I was walking, trying to find… anything, really. I didn't see the wall in front of me until I hit it. Then, a light came on…" He sniffled as the memory of the nightmare came to mind, tears welling up. "There was… a-a newspaper. On it was… some of you guys." He looked over at Lori. "I can't bring myself to say what it said, but you were… you were…"

Luna noticed her brother shivering, so she pulled him close, enveloping him in her warmth. "It's okay, bro," she told him, "just breathe."

He nodded, steadying his breathing before he continued. "I thought I had… lost you."

Lori frowned. "Lincoln, you're not going to lose me."

He shook his head. "It wasn't just you." The tears were starting to break through. "I ran away from it, but I kept bumping into more newspapers, each one saying that I had… lost one of you. It was like a maze, and I was desperately trying to get out of there. I couldn't believe that you guys were… that you were… gone."

"So, what happened?" Luan asked.

"I saw something, a… a door. I just ran, hoping I would wake up when I got through it."

"And did you?" Lana asked, her and her twin both looking like they could cry again at any moment, but was disappointed when he shook his head.

"I was just… trapped. The door was gone, and I was stuck in a room, with the newspaper reports on the walls. The pictures of you guys… came to life, like… ghosts. You wanted me to… join you."

"You mean…" Lucy spoke up. "In the afterlife?" Lincoln nodded, causing both the goth girl and the twins to start tearing up again. "I'm sorry."

Lincoln looked up, his red and tired eyes still teary, then got to his feet and walked over to the goth girl, before kneeling down and hugging her. "Don't be. I'm okay now, thanks to you guys."

She tightly hugged him back, staining his shirt with her tears. "I know that… I like the darkness… but I would never want you to join me there, or for something like that to happen."

He gently stroked her hair to soothe her. "I know you wouldn't." The twins couldn't hold it any longer and began hugging him as well, shortly followed by the rest of the sisters, whilst the parents watched on, relieved that their son was okay. They must have held the hug for fifteen seconds before letting go. "Thanks, you guys. For calming me down, and… just being there when I needed you."

"We always will, Lincoln," Lori assured.

"You're sure you're okay, Lincoln?" His father asked, and Lincoln nodded. "That's good to hear."

"Alright, everyone back to bed," Rita called out. "Don't forget, it's a school night." The two parents began to walk away, but stopped when no one else moved. "I mean it."

"But, I don't wanna leave Linky," Leni told her mother.

"Me neither!" Lola and Lana agreed, each holding one of Lincoln's legs.

"To be fair," Lincoln spoke up, putting his hands on the twins' backs, "I'm still a little shaken. I'd rather not be alone tonight."

"Then you don't have to be," Luna spoke up. "I won't leave you alone if you don't want to be."

"I know you all care for your brother," Lynn Sr. explained, "but you can't all stay with him."

It was a few seconds of awkward silence before Lori spoke up. "Maybe not in his room," she countered, "but they can in my room." She turned to her sisters, whispering in Luan's ear, before she motioned for them to head to her room. "Let's go."

They all began walking down the landing towards the eldest sister's bedroom. "Lori," Rita said, "I don't know about this."

"I know, but it's just for tonight. We just want to make sure Lincoln will be alright. I doubt the rest of us will be able to sleep without worrying about him, and… well, you heard Lincoln."

"Well… Alright. I trust you."

Lori smiled. "Thanks, mom."

Whilst her parents went back downstairs, Lori headed towards Luan and Luna's room, where she helped the fourteen-year-old lift up her mattress and carry it with the bedding and pillows into her own room, where the remaining siblings were. She placed the mattress in the middle of the room, before turning to her sisters and brother. "Alright," Lori spoke up, getting their attention. "We'll all stay here for tonight. No more than four to a bed." She turned to the rocker. "Luna, you should stay with Lincoln. You were the one who calmed him down, after all."

Luna nodded. "That alright with you, little bro?" She asked the boy.

"Yeah," he replied, while turning to the twins. "Do you two want to stay with us too?"

"Yes, please," they both answered.

"Okay."

So, after Lori turned off the light they all went to bed, with Luan, Lynn and Lucy sharing one bed, Lincoln, Luna and the twins taking the middle one, and Leni, Lisa and Lori taking the other. As the others said their goodnights and began to drift off to sleep, Lincoln looked at his third oldest sister. "Luna?" He whispered. "Thank you."

"It's okay, bro," she told him. "You're safe now."

"I know, but… it was so scary, you know? I really thought that…"

"Shh… it's okay. Just rest, Lincoln. I'm not going anywhere."

He gently nodded, before resting his head on the pillow and shutting his eyes. Luna laid there, watching her brother as he slept steadily, with Lola holding onto his arm and Lana resting on his feet like a puppy. She smiled, placing a kiss on her brother's cheek.

'You're safe now,' she thought as she began to drift to sleep, holding him protectively, 'as long as I'm around, you'll be safe.'

 **THE END**


End file.
